Optical module

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure provides an optical module comprising: a photoelectric conversion unit, a first demodulation circuit, and a second demodulation circuit; the first demodulation circuit and the second demodulation circuit are respectively connected to the photoelectric conversion unit; the photoelectric conversion unit is configured to convert the received optical signal into an electrical signal; the first demodulation circuit is configured to demodulate an electrical signal converted by the photoelectric conversion unit and generate a high-frequency electrical signal; the second demodulation circuit is configured to demodulate an electrical signal converted by the photoelectric conversion unit and generate a low-frequency electrical signal.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of the U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/356,962, filed on Mar. 18, 2019, which is acontinuation-in-part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/394,659 filed on Dec. 29, 2016, which claims priority to ChinesePatent Application No. 201610813775.X, filed on Sep. 9, 2016 andentitled “Optical Module”, all of which are incorporated by reference intheir entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to electronic technology and, moreparticularly, to an optical module.

BACKGROUND

With the development of optical fiber communication technology, in thefield of optical fiber communication, it is required to loadlow-frequency signal on the original high-speed service channel. Forexample, the International Organization for Standardization, FSAN,proposed to add an Auxiliary Management and Control Channel (AMCC) to apoint-to-point dense wavelength division multiplexing passive opticalnetwork. The transmission rate of AMCC is generally below 100 Kbit/s,i.e., belonging to low-frequency signal. Therefore, PTP WDM PON networkis required to bear both the original high-speed service signal andlow-frequency signal such as AMCC.

In the PTP WDM PON network, the optical signal is received andtransmitted by an optical module. However, in the prior art, the opticalmodule can only receive and transmit the high-frequency digital servicesignal, but cannot receive or transmit the low-frequency signal.

Therefore, the optical module in the prior art cannot meet therequirement of bearing both the high-frequency signal and thelow-frequency signal simultaneously.

SUMMARY

The present application provides an optical module including aphotoelectric conversion unit, a first demodulation circuit, and asecond demodulation circuit;

the first demodulation circuit and the second demodulation circuit arerespectively connected to the photoelectric conversion unit;

the photoelectric conversion unit is configured to convert the receivedoptical signal into an electrical signal;

the first demodulation circuit is configured to demodulate an electricalsignal converted by the photoelectric conversion unit and generate ahigh-frequency electrical signal;

the second demodulation circuit is configured to demodulate theelectrical signal converted by the photoelectric conversion unit andgenerate a low-frequency electrical signal.

The optical module provided by the present application includes thephotoelectric conversion unit, the first demodulation circuit, and thesecond demodulation circuit. After the photoelectric conversion unitconverts the received optical signal into an electrical signal, thefirst demodulation circuit and the second demodulation circuitdemodulate the electrical signal and generate a high-frequency and alow-frequency electrical signal respectively, and output thehigh-frequency and the low-frequency electrical signal to the subsequentdevices for use. So that the optical module can bear both thehigh-frequency signal and the low-frequency signal to meet therequirements of bearing both high-frequency and low-frequency signal inthe practical application.

In addition, the first demodulation circuit and the second demodulationcircuit in the optical module provided in the present application areindependent from each other, that is, a circuit that demodulateslow-frequency signal is added on the basis of the original circuit thatdemodulates high-frequency signal circuit, therefore it is possible toensure that the original demodulation for high-frequency signal is notaffected and guarantee a good sensitivity of the optical module

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

A brief introduction will be given hereinafter to the accompany drawingswhich will be used in the description of the present application orrelated art in order to explain the technical solutions of the presentapplication or related art more clearly. Apparently, the drawings in thedescription below are merely illustrating some embodiments of thepresent application. Those skilled in the art may obtain other drawingsaccording to these drawings without paying any creative labor.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of optical communication interaction ofoptical modules;

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of an optical module according to someembodiments of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of another optical module according tosome embodiments of the present application; and

FIG. 4 is a structural diagram of yet another optical module accordingto some embodiments of the present application.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an optical signal modulated by one highfrequency and one low frequency.

FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of a transimpedance amplifier accordingto some embodiments of the present application.

FIG. 7 is a structural diagram of a limiting amplifier according to someembodiments of the present application.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are structural diagrams of a low-frequency demodulationcircuit according to some embodiments of the present application.

FIGS. 9A-9F are schematic diagrams of an electrical signal according tosome embodiments of the present application.

FIG. 10 is a structural diagram of a low-frequency circuit according tosome embodiments of the present application.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

In order to make the purposes, the technical solutions and theadvantages of the present application clearer, a clear and fulldescription will be given to the technical solution of the presentapplication with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, thedescribed embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the presentapplication, rather than all of them. According to the embodiments ofthe present application, all of the other embodiments obtained by thosewith ordinary skill in the art without consuming any creative work fallwithin the protection scope of the present application.

An optical module is a kind of photoelectric conversion device, and theoptical communication using optical modules is an interactivecommunication. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of optical communicationinteraction of optical modules. As shown in FIG. 1, at a lighttransmitting terminal, an optical module is connected to a systemterminal 1, such as a switch, receives an electrical signal from thesystem terminal 1, and converts the electrical signal into an opticalsignal for output, and inputs the optical signal into an opticalwaveguid.e, such as an optical fiber, to realize informationtransmitting. At a light receiving terminal, an optical module isconnected to a system terminal 2, such as a switch, receives the opticalsignal from the transmitting terminal, converts the optical signal intoan electrical signal and outputs it to the system terminal 2. In thiscase, the system terminal 1 and the system terminal 2 may include aswitch, an optical network terminal set-top box, an optical lineterminal set-top box, or the like.

The present application relates mainly to the optical module of thelight receiving terminal, that is, a structure in which the opticalmodule receives, converts and demodulates optical signal.

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of an optical module according to someembodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2, an opticalmodule includes a photoelectric conversion unit 1, a first demodulationcircuit 2, and a second demodulation circuit 3.

The first demodulation circuit 2 and the second demodulation circuit 3are respectively connected to the photoelectric conversion unit 1.

In this case, the photoelectric conversion unit 1 is configured toconvert the received optical signal inton electrical

The photoelectric conversion unit 1 receives the optical signaltransmitted from the Optical Line Terminal (OLT). The optical signaltransmitted by the OLT may be a subcarrier modulated optical signalformed by the high-frequency signal and the low-frequency signal. Theoptical signal may be demodulated by the optical module to get ahigh-frequency signal and a low-frequency electrical signal.

The optical module receives the optical signal transmitted by the OLTthrough the photoelectric conversion unit 1. After the receiving, theoptical module 1 converts the optical signal into an electrical signal.The electrical signal is a current signal. The photoelectric conversionunit 1 uses the photoelectric effect to convert the light with opticalpower changes into a current signal with current value changes whichwill then be demodulated by a subsequent circuit.

The first demodulation circuit 2 is configured to demodulate anelectrical signal converted by the photoelectric conversion unit 1 andgenerate a high-frequency electrical signal.

The second demodulation circuit 3 is configured to demodulate anelectrical signal converted by the photoelectric conversion unit 1 andgenerate a low-frequency electrical signal.

The first demodulation circuit 2 and the second demodulation circuit 3are two circuits which are independent from each other and are connectedto the photoelectric conversion unit 1, respectively. The firstdemodulation circuit 2 generates a high-frequency electrical signalthrough an internal device, and the second demodulation circuit 3generates a low-frequency electrical signal through an internal device.in this case, the high-frequency electrical signal refers to ahigh-speed data service signal, the rate of which can reach 10 Gbps,while the low-frequency electrical signal refers to the signal cansupport AMCC function, the rate of which can be less than 100kbps.

Optionally, the high-frequency electrical signal generated by the firstdemodulation circuit 2 through the internal device may be a digitalsignal or an analog signal, and may be processed by the back-end devicethat receives the high-frequency electrical signal as necessary. Forexample, if the high-frequency electrical signal is a digital signal andthe back-end device that receives the high-frequency electrical signalneeds to use an analog signal, then the back-end device may firstperform digital-to-analogue conversion. If the high-frequency electricalsignal is a digital signal and the back-end device that receives thehigh-frequency electrical signal also needs to use a digital signal,then the back-end device can directly use the digital signal. Thelow-frequency electrical signal generated by the second demodulationcircuit 3 through the internal device may be an AMCC signal, that is, asignal that can support AMCC function, in particular, such as a digitalsignal, a square signal, a sawtooth signal, an analog signal or thelike.

It should be noted that the present application does not limit the typeof the generated low-frequency electrical signal. Any type of thelow-frequency electrical signal that differs from the high-frequencydigital signal, can be demodulated by the optical module provided by thepresent application and be output.

Optionally, the foregoing photoelectric conversion unit 1 can be anavalanche photo diode (API)) or a PIN photo diode.

In the embodiment of the present application, the optical moduleincludes the photoelectric conversion unit, the first demodulationcircuit, and the second demodulation circuit. After the photoelectricconversion unit converts the received optical signal into the electricalsignal, the first demodulation circuit and the second demodulationcircuit demodulate the electrical signal and generate a high-frequencysignal and a low-frequency electrical signal respectively, and outputthem to the subsequent device for use. So that the optical module canbear both the high-frequency signal and the low-frequency signal, whichmeets the requirements of bearing both high-frequency signal andlow-frequency signal in the practical application.

In addition, in the embodiments of the present application, the firstdemodulation circuit and the second demodulation circuit are independentfrom each other. That is, a circuit for demodulating the low-frequencysignal is added on the basis of the original circuit for demodulatinghigh-frequency signal circuit, therefore it is possible to ensure thatthe original demodulation for high-frequency signal is not affected andguarantee a good sensitivity of optical module.

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of another optical module according tosome embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 3, thefirst demodulation circuit 2 includes a transimpedance amplifier 21 anda high-pass filtering unit 22. In this case, the transimpedanceamplifier 21 is connected to the photoelectric conversion unit 1, andthe high-pass filtering unit 22 is connected to the transimpedanceamplifier 21.

The transimpedance amplifier 21 is configured to convert a currentsignal output from the photoelectric conversion unit 1 into a voltagesignal for output, while the high-pass filtering unit 22 is configuredto perform high-pass filtering on the voltage signal output from thetransimpedance amplifier 21.

The transimpedance amplifier 21 can not only convert the current signaloutput by the photoelectric conversion unit 1 into a voltage signal, butalso can perform the preliminary amplification on the converted voltagesignal.

The high-pass filtering unit 22 is mainly used for performing high-passfiltering on the voltage signal output from the transimpedance amplifier21.

The high-pass filtering unit 22 may be embodied in several ways, amongwhich one is shown as FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a structural diagram of yetanother optical module according to some embodiments of the presentapplication. As shown in FIG. 4, the high-pass filter unit 22 includes alimiting amplifier (LIA) 221, a first capacitor 222, and a secondcapacitor 223.

The first capacitor 222 is connected to the transimpedance amplifier 21,while the second capacitor 223 is connected to the transimpedanceamplifier 21.

The limiting amplifier 221 is connected to the first capacitor 222 andthe second capacitor 223, respectively.

The tra.nsimpeda.nce amplifier 21 outputs two differential signals. Oneend of the first capacitor 222 and one end of the second capacitor 223are connected to the two differential signal outputs of thetransimpedance amplifier 21, respectively, while the other end of thefirst capacitor 222 and the other end of the second capacitor 223 areconnected to the input of the limiting amplifier 221.

The limiting amplifier 221 is configured to perform high-pass filteringon the voltage signal output by the transimpedance amplifier 21 alongwith the first capacitor 222 and the second capacitor 223.

The first capacitor 222, the second capacitor 223, and the pull-upresistor integrated in the limiting amplifier 221 constitute a high-passfilter, and when the voltage signal passes through the first capacitor222, the second capacitor 223 and the limiting amplifier 221, thelow-frequency signal within is filtered, thereby achieving high-passfiltering.

Optionally, the first capacitor 222 and the second capacitor 223 can beblocking capacitors, which are configured to remove the DC component inthe signal output from the transimpedance amplifier 21, and thesubsequent limiting amplifier 221 will further process the signal passedthrough the first capacitor 222 and the second capacitor 223.

The limiting amplifier 221 is further configured to limit-amplify andoutput the high-pass filtered voltage signal.

During the operation of the optical module, after the current signaloutput by the photoelectric conversion unit is received, thetransimpedance amplifier converts the current signal into a voltagesignal,meanwhile performs preliminary amplification on the voltagesignal. Further, when the voltage signal passes through the firstcapacitor, the second capacitor, and the limiting amplifier, thelow-frequency signal therein is filtered, thereby achieving high-passfiltering. Further, the limiting amplifier amplifies the signalaccording to the voltage signal after high-pass filtered, and thelimiting amplifier further outputs the amplified signal to the afterwarddevice, i.e., the system terminal described in FIG. 1, for use.

In some embodiments of the present application, the second demodulationcircuit is in the following circuit structure. Reference is still madeto FIG. 3 or FIG. 4, the second demodulation circuit 3 includes acurrent mirroring unit 31 and a sample-and-hold circuit 32.

In this case, the current mirroring unit 31 is connected to thephotoelectric conversion unit 1.

The sample-and-hold circuit 32 is connected to the first output end ofthe current mirroring unit 31.

The current mirroring unit 31 is configured to receive a responsecurrent signal of the photoelectric conversion unit 1, perform low-passfiltering on the response current signal, and output a mirror currentsignal of the response current signal to the sample-and-hold circuit 32.

The sample-and-hold circuit 32 is configured to convert the receivedmirror current signal into a voltage

In the embodiment of the present application, the current mirroring unitis connected to the photoelectric conversion unit. After thephotoelectric conversion unit completes the photoelectric conversion andgenerates the current signal, the current mirroring unit can receive theresponse current signal of the photoelectric conversion unit, andperform low-pass filtering on the response current signal, so that thehigh-frequency signal in the response current signal is filtered.Further, the current mirroring unit outputs a mirror current signal ofthe low-pass filtered current signal which is further converted to avoltage by the sample-and-hold circuit and is output to a afterwarddevice for use. After the processing by the current mirroring unit andthe photoelectric conversion unit, the output signal is a low-frequencysignal,such that bearing the low-frequency signal in the optical moduleis achieved.

Further, reference is still made to FIG. 3, the second demodulationcircuit 3 further includes a high voltage driven circuit 33.

In this case, the high voltage driven circuit 33 is connected to thecurrent mirroring unit 31.

The high voltage driven circuit 33 is configured to provide thephotoelectric conversion unit 1 with a reverse high voltage through thecurrent mirroring unit 31, so as to enable the photoelectric conversionunit 1 to generate a response current signal.

Further, reference is still made to FIG. 3, the second demodulationcircuit 3 further includes: a Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI)sampling circuit 34 and a Microcontroller Unit (MCU) 35.

In this case, one end of the RSSI sampling circuit 34 is connected tothe second output end of the current mirroring unit 31, and the otherend of the RSSI sampling circuit 34 is connected to the MCU 35.

The RSSI sampling circuit 34 is configured to monitor the mirror currentsignal output from the current mirroring unit 31 and send the monitoringresult to the MCU 35.

After the current mirroring unit 31 generates a low-pass filtered mirrorcurrent signal, the mirror current signal will be output from the firstoutput end and the second output end of the current mirroring unit 31,respectively. In this case, the mirror current signal output from thefirst output end is input to the foregoing sample-and-hold circuit, andin the embodiment of the present application, the mirror current signaloutput from the second output end will be input to the RSSI samplingcircuit 34. The R.SSI sampling circuit 34 can monitor the optical powerof the optical signal received by the optical module by monitoring themirror current signal, and the RSSI sampling circuit 34 reports themonitoring result to the MCU 35 for the subsequent analysis andprocessing by the MCU.

The high voltage driven circuit 33 can provide a reverse high voltage tothe photoelectric conversion unit 1. The high voltage driven circuit 33is connected to the current mirroring unit 31. In the processing ofproviding the reverse high voltage to the photoelectric conversion unit1, noise is generated accordingly. Due to the use of the mirror currentsource and the fact that the input and the two outputs are independentfrom each other, the noise generated by the reverse high voltage can bereduced, and therefore the signal validity in the optical module isimproved.

Based on some of the foregoing embodiments, in some optionalembodiments, the foregoing current mirroring unit 31 can be a mirrorcurrent source with reference to FIG. 3.

In this case, the first input end of the mirror current source isconnected to e high voltage driven circuit 33, the first output end ofthe mirror current source is connected to the sample-and-hold circuit32, the second output end of the mirror current source rs connected tothe RSSI sampling circuit 34, and a third output end of the mirrorcurrent source is connected to the photoelectric conversion unit 1.

In this case, the first output end and the second output end of themirror current source output a mirror image signal of the responsecurrent signal of the photoelectric conversion unit, which is receivedby the mirror current source, while the third output end of the mirrorcurrent source outputs a high voltage signal generated by a high voltagedriven circuit. After the high voltage signal is input to thephotoelectric conversion unit, the photoelectric conversion unit isenabled to operate and generate a response current signal.

In the process of operation, the mirror current source receives areverse high voltage from the high voltage driven circuit 33 and outputsit to the photoelectric conversion unit 1, and further receives aresponse current signal of the photoelectric conversion unit. Since themirror current source has the characteristic of being able to respond toa slow current, in case that the response current signal is alow-frequency electrical signal, the mirror current source can serve asa low-frequency device, i.e., the mirror current source can only processthe low-frequency signal in the response current signal, therefore, thelow-pass filtering is achieved only by the characteristic of the mirrorcurrent itself without adding an additional low-pass filtering device inthe second demodulation circuit, After the mirror current sourcereceives the response current signal, a low-frequency mirror currentsignal is output from the first output end and the second output end,and the subsequent two mirror current signal is respectively processedby the subsequent devices.

In some optional embodiments, reference is still made to FIG. 3, thesecond demodulation circuit 3 further includes an operational amplifier36.

In this case, the operational amplifier 36 is connected to thesample-and-hold circuit 32.

The operational amplifier 36 is configured to amplify the voltage signaloutput from the sample-and-hold circuit 32.

As mentioned in the above, a low-frequency mirror current signal will beoutput by he mirror current source, and then be converted by thesample-and-hold circuit into a voltage signal whose value is generallysmall. If the voltage signal is directly used by afterward device, thenthe resolution for the voltage signal by the afterward device will beaffected. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, anoperational amplifier is connected after the sample-and-hold circuit toamplify the voltage signal output from the sample-and-hold circuit, andthe amplified voltage signal is output to the afterward device so as toensure these voltage signals can be processed by the afterward device.

The present disclosure below describes another embodiment of a systemincluding an optical module for receiving an optical signal modulated byat least two frequencies: one high frequency and one low frequency. Forexample, the high frequency may correspond to a service channel (or datachannel) of 10 Gbps or 25 Gbps, or other high-bit-rate channels. The lowfrequency may, for example, correspond to a signaling or control channelof 50 Kbps or other low frequency channels. The system may use the highfrequency modulated optical signal for the service channel and at thesame time may use the low frequency modulated optical signal for thesignaling or control channel.

An optical signal may be modulated by one high frequency and one lowfrequency simultaneously. In an exemplary implementation using amplitudemodulation, as shown in FIG. 5, the optical signal 500 may include ahigh frequency component 510 and a low frequency component 520. In oneimplementation, an optical source such as a laser source maybe directlycurrent modulated at the low frequency. For example, in an EA lasersource, the low frequency signal may be coupled to the DC electricalcurrent connected the BIAS. In some implementations, the high frequencycomponent may be produced by external optical modulation or directcurrent modulation of a laser source.

The low frequency component 520 may be used for the control channel,alternatively referred to as signaling channel. The power P(0) oflow-power level 522 may correspond to “0” in the signaling channel, andthe power P(1) of high-power level 524 may correspond to “1” in thesignaling channel. The modulation depth of the signaling channel mayequal to the difference of P(0) and P(1) divided by the summation ofP(0) and P(1). The modulation depth may be adjusted by monitoring theP(1) and P(0) with an signal analyzer (for example, an oscilloscope) bypassing an electrical signal produced by a light detector to a low-passfilter. The low-pass filter may perform a D.C. coupling to block thehigh frequency components and passing the low-frequency components.

The optical module for receiving the optical signal may include ahigh-frequency demodulation circuit and a low-frequency demodulationcircuit. The high-frequency demodulation circuit may include atransimpedance amplifier (TIA) and a limiting amplifier (LA), and maydemodulate the optical signal to obtain a high frequency signal. Thelow-frequency demodulation circuit may demodulate the optical signal toobtain a low frequency signal transmitted.

In one implementation, the transimpedance amplifier may include acircuit 600 as shown in FIG. 6. The circuit 600 may include a lightdetector 610 and its power supply 620. The light detector 610 mayreceive the optical signal and output an electrical signal 612. Thelight detector 610 may include but is not limited to a photodiode (PD)or an avalanche photodiode (APD). The power supply 620 may be a standardvoltage or current power supply or a high voltage power supply for APD.

In one implementation, the electrical signal 612 may be an electricalcurrent signal. The transimpedance amplifier circuit 600 may include anamplifier 640 for converting the electrical current signal 612 to anelectrical voltage signal 642. The amplifier 640 may be a low-noiseoperational amplifier, and one of its input terminals may connect to theoutput terminal of the light detector 610. The transimpedance amplifier600 may include a differential amplifier 650 for converting theelectrical voltage signal 642 to a differential voltage output 652.

In one implementation, the limiting amplifier may include a circuit 700as shown in FIG. 7. The limiting amplifier 700 may receive thedifferential voltage signal 712 from the transimpedance amplifier,amplify the voltage signal but limit the final output within apre-determined range, so as to output a differential voltage output 752.The limiting amplifier may include a power detector 760, an offsetcorrection 780, and a plurality of amplifiers (for example, fouroperational amplifiers as 720, 730, 740, and 750).

FIGS. 8A-8B show an exemplary implementation of the low-frequencydemodulation circuit. FIGS. 9A-9F show corresponding signal waveforms atvarious stage within the low-frequency demodulation circuit 800 of FIG.8. Specifically and as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the exemplarylow-frequency demodulation circuit 800 may include a circuit forreceiving an electrical signal from a light detector and demodulate theelectrical signal to obtain a low-frequency signal. In oneimplementation, an electrical current signal 802 may be an output signalfrom a PD or APD upon receiving an optical signal. In anotherimplementation, an electrical current signal 802 may be an output signalfrom a Received Signal Strength Indications (RSSI) circuit, which maycollect an output signal from a PD or APD upon receiving an opticalsignal.

The demodulation circuit in FIG. 8A or FIG. 8B may receive any type ofanalog electrical signal, for example, an electrical current signal oran electrical voltage signal, and convert the analog electrical signalto a digital signal. For one example, the demodulation circuit mayreceive an analog electrical signal directly from a light detector. Foranother example, the demodulation circuit may receive an analogelectrical signal pre-processed by another electrical circuit, forexample, a RSSI circuit or other types of circuit.

In conventionalimplementations, when a power of an optical signaldrifts, the D.C. components of the electrical signal produced by a lightdetector for the optical signal may drift. Such drifting may complicatea conversion from an analog signal to a digital signal and decrease theprocessing speed and efficiency. For example and as shown in FIG. 9A,the D.C. components of the electrical signal may be 931 at some timeperiod and then may drift to 932 at other time period. The presentdisclosure describes a low-frequency demodulation circuit that overcomescomplications caused by this drafting.

In more detail, the low-frequency demodulation circuit 800 may include aresistor 810 to convert the electrical current signal 802 to anelectrical voltage signal 812. The low-frequency demodulation circuitmay include a low-pass amplifier 820 to filter out high-frequencysignals and amplify low-frequency signals to produce an amplifiedlow-frequency electrical voltage signal 822. Here, the low frequency mayinclude a frequency on the same order as the frequency of signalingchannel, for example, on the order of about 100 KHz or 1 MHz. The highfrequency may include a frequency on the same order as the frequency ofservice or data channel, for example, on the order of about 1 GHz or 10GHz. The low-pass amplifier 820 may have a cut-off frequency of, forexample, 200 KHz or 1 MHz.

In one implementation, the low-pass amplifier 820 may be a low-passfilter circuit when the electrical voltage signal 812 comprisessufficient signal strength. The low-pass filter circuit may blockhigh-frequency components and allow low-frequency components to passthrough. In another implementation, the low-pass amplifier 820 may beoptional when the electrical voltage signal 812 comprises sufficientsignal strength.

The amplified low-frequency electrical voltage signal 822 may directlyconnect to one input terminal of a comparator 840, and may pass througha low-pass filter 830 and then connect to another input terminal of thecomparator 840. The low-pass filter 830 may filter out alternativecurrent (A.C.) component in the amplified low-frequency electricalvoltage signal 822 and only allow D.C. component to pass through. Thecomparator 840 may compare the difference of the voltage inputs at thetwo input terminals to produce discrete high or low voltage levels.

The electrical signal corresponding to an optical signal may have a formas shown in 900 of FIG. 9A. The electrical signal 900 may include a highfrequency signal 910 and a low frequency signal 920. Due to the powershifting or drifting of an optical signal, the electrical signal 900 mayhave a shifting of D.C, component that shifts, for example, between 931and 932.

In one implementation, the low-frequency demodulation circuit maypreform A.C. coupling by including a capacitor C1 815. The capacitor C1815 may block D.C. components in the electrical voltage signal 812 andallow A.C. components to pass through. Optionally, the low-frequencydemodulation circuit may also include a D.C. offset circuit 816 tooffset the A.C. components relative to a reference voltage (V_(REF)).Therefore, the electrical signal 900 shown in FIG. 9A may be convertedto an electrical signal 940 as shown in FIG. 9B, having an adjusted D.C.component of V_(REF) 943 that is not affected by the drifting of theoptical signal.

The low-frequency demodulation circuit may pass the electrical signal940 through a low-pass amplifier 820 to block high frequency componentsand amplify the low-frequency components to generate an electricalsignal 950 as shown in FIG. 9C. The electrical signal 950 may have aD.C. component of V_(DC).

The low-frequency demodulation circuit may further pass the electricalsignal 950 through a low-pass filter 830 to filter out A.C. componentsand only allow D.C. components in the electrical signal 950 passingthrough, so as to generate an electrical signal 960 as shown in FIG. 9D.For example, the low-pass filter 830 may include a resistor-capacitor(RC) low-pass filter circuit.

The low-frequency demodulation circuit may pass the electrical signal950 and electrical signal 960 through a comparator 840 to compare thedifference of the two inputs to produce an electrical signal 970 asshown in FIG. 9E. The electrical signal 970 is quasi-binary and thus maybe efficiently processed by a microprocessor without much complication.

In another implementation, the low-frequency demodulation circuit maypreform D.C. coupling so as to convert the electrical signal 900 shownin FIG. 9A to an electrical signal 980 as shown in FIG. 9F. Then thelow-frequency demodulation circuit may preform similar operations as inthe A.C. coupling so as to filter out the drifting D.C. levels andproduce output similar to 970 of FIG. 9E.

The present disclosure describes another embodiment of an electriccircuit 1000, as shown in FIG. 10, for converting a low-frequencycomponent of an analog electrical signal to a digital electrical signal.The electric circuit may include a first low-pass filter 1020, a secondlow-pass filter 1040, and a comparator 1060.

The first low-pass filter 1020 and the second low-pass filter may havedifferent cut-off or low-passing frequencies. For example, the firstlow-pass filter 1020 may have a lower cut-off frequency than the secondlow-pass filter 1040. Optionally, the first low-pass filter 1020 may bea low-pass amplifier, and the second low-pass filter 1040 may be anotherlow-pass amplifier.

In one implementation, the first low-pass filter 1020 may block A.C,components of input electrical signal 1002 and allow signal near D.C.component to pass through (a slowly drifting D.C. level, for example).Thus, the first signal 1022 may include the D.C. component of the inputelectrical signal. The second low-pass filter 1040 may blockhigh-frequency components of the input electrical signal 1002 and allowlow-frequency components to pass through. Thus the second signal 1042may include the low-frequency components of the input electrical signal.

The comparator 1060 may receive the first signal 1022 and the secondsignal 1042, and output a quasi-binary signal 1062. The quasi-binarysignal 1062 may be efficiently processed by other digital signalprocessing unit without much complication.

Finally, it should be noted that the foregoing embodiments are merelyintended for describing the technical solutions of the presentapplication rather than limiting the present application. Although thepresent application is described in detail with reference to theforegoing embodiments, persons of ordinary skill in the art shouldunderstand that they may still make modifications to the technicalsolutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or makeequivalenteplacements to some or all technical features therein;however, these modifications or replacements do not make the essence ofcorresponding technical solutions depart from the scope of the technicalsolutions in the embodiments of the present application.

What is claimed is:
 1. An optical module, comprising: a photoelectricconverter; a first demodulation circuit: and a second demodulationcircuit at least partially separate from the first demodulation circuit,wherein: the first demodulation circuit and the second demodulationcircuit are electrically connected to the photoelectric converter; thephotoelectric converter is configured to convert a received opticalsignalnto an electrical signal; and the first demodulation circuit isconfigured to demodulate the electrical signal to generate a firstelectrical signal at a first frequency, and the second demodulationcircuit is configured to demodulate the electrical signal to generate asecond electrical signal at a second frequency lower than the firstfrequency.
 2. The optical module of claim 1, wherein the first electricsignal carries high speed communication service data and the secondelectric signal carries low speed communication control information. 3.The optical module of clai wherein the second electric signal carriesthe low speed communication control information for performing anAuxiliary Management and Control Channel (AMCC) function.
 4. The opticalmodule of claim 2, wherein the first electric signal carries the highspeed communication service data at higher than 1 gigabits per secondand the second electric signal carries the low speed communicationcontrol information at a lower than 1 megabits per second.
 5. Theoptical module of claim 2, wherein the first electric signal carries thehigh speed communication service data in a digital form and the secondelectric signal carries the low speed communication control informationin an analog form.
 6. The optical module of claim 3, wherein the firstelectric signal carries the high speed communication service data andthe second electric signal carries the low speed communication controlinformation in a digital form.
 7. The optical module of claim 1, whereinthe first frequency is higher than 1 GHz and the second frequency islower than 1 MHz,
 8. The optical module of claim 1, wherein: theelectric signal converted by the photoelectric converter comprises acurrent signal; the first demodulation circuit comprises atransimpedance amplifier circuit; and the transimpedance amplifiercircuit is electrically connected to the photoelectric converter, and isconfigured to convert the current signal from the photoelectricconverter into a voltage signal.
 9. The optical module of claim 8,wherein the transimpedance amplifier circuit comprises a multi-stagecurrent-to-voltage amplifying unit.
 10. The optical module of claim 9,wherein the multi-stage current-to-voltage amplifying unit comprises atleast one differential amplifier.
 11. The optical module of claim 8,wherein the first demodulation circuit further comprises a limitingamplifier electrically connected to the transimpedance amplifiercircuit, and configured to convert the voltage signal from thetransimpedance amplifier circuit to a limiting amplified voltage signal.12. The cal odule of claim 11, wherein the limiting amplifier comprisesa plurality of cascading amplifiers.
 13. The cal module of claim 12,wherein the limiting amplifier further comprises an offset correctioncircuit.
 14. The optical module of claim 1, wherein: the electric signalconverted by the photoelectric converter comprises a current signal; thefirst demodulation circuit comprises a transimpedance amplifierelectrically connected to the photoelectric converter for converting thecurrent signal into a voltage signal; and a high-pass filter connectedto the transimpedance amplifier and configured to perform high-passfiltering of the voltage signal to filter out signal at the secondfrequency,
 15. The optical module of claim 1, wherein: the electricsignal converted by the photoelectric converter comprises a currentsignal; the second demodulation circuit comprises a current-to-voltageconversion circuit and electrically connected to the photoelectricconverter for converting the current signal into a voltage signal. 16.The optical module of claim 15, wherein the second demodulation circuitfurther comprises an alternative-current (A.C.) coupling circuitconfigured to block a direct-current (D.C.) component in the voltagesignal and allow an A.C. component to pass through.
 17. The opticalmodule of claim 15, wherein the second demodulation circuit furthercomprises a low-pass amplifier electrically connected to thecurrent-to-voltage conversion circuit and configured to filter outsignal at the first frequency and produce an amplified electricalvoltage signal.
 18. The optical module of claim 17, wherein the seconddemodulation circuit further comprises: a low-pass filter electricallyconnected to the low-pass amplifier and configured to filter out A.C.components of the amplified electrical voltage signal and allow a D.C.component to pass through; and a comparator electrically connected tothe low-pass amplifier and the low-pass filter, and configured tocompare the amplified electrical voltage signal and the D.C. componentto generate a quasi-binary electrical signal.
 19. The optical module ofclaim 1, wherein the second demodulation circuit comprises: the electricsignal converted by the photoelectric converter prises a current signal;a current mirroring circuit electrically connected to the photoelectricconverter and configured to receive the current signal and performlow-pass filtering to remove signal at the first frequency to output amirror current signal; and a sample-and-hold circuit electricallyconnected to the current mirroring circuit for converting the mirrorcurrent signal into a voltage signal.
 20. The optical module of claim19, wherein the second demodulation circuit further comprises anoperational amplifier electrically connected to the sample-and-holdcircuit.